*Goat's Milk & Gardening*
I'm a believer...
I have found the joy of pouring chocolate goat's milk on my morning cereal...and another glassful in the afternoon...to be delicious and healthful..
And how can one walk outdoors, see beautiful flowers and trees, and not feel JOY... pure bliss...
Gardening should not be a chore...but a PASSION...
I am thankful my mother introduced me to the healing powers of dirt...all those years ago...at Sweet Apple Cabin.
Our dearest Beatrix Potter would have been pleased at our recent acquisition of Peter Rabbit and His Watering Can which sits between the rockers at the back of the cottage...
Those three women, Tasha, Beatrix, and Dottie are my gardening inspiration on this day.
The boxwood hedge between the drive and our walkway needing trimming...
I snipped carefully...and retrieved the cuttings...I left the bushes *bushy*...not squared off...this will be an informal cottage garden...
I found baskets and containers and vases of all sorts...and as a result, beautiful green and fragrant scent filled the cottage.
The kitchen window...
The living room...
Wouldn't Miss Tasha be proud....
Hopalong Bebe and Eliza did their part.
Bebe's clay pot boasts her clippings...
...and Eliza's wheel barrow was quite invaluable for those tiniest twigs....
We thought of her pretty gardening cart when we found this charming painting of an English Garden Cart...
The new roses in our petite cottage garden have bloomed ...and their pinks and reds are lovely in my Matthew's silver baby cup...
...and as Eliza has been so supportive through this move to Rose Water Cottage....a single bloom was picked for her tiny vase...
She sniffs and sniffs...
The two Japanese Lilac trees we set on each side of the front windows are growing fresh leaves as fast as they can....
The lilac tree in front of Tasha Tudor's home in Vermont, was the inspiration for acquiring these trees.
We found a precious Bird House that we could not pass by...and brought it home with us to the cottage...
..hopeful that a lovely little pair might make their cozy nest in this delightful accommodation.
Another of Tasha's *JOYS* was doing housework...ironing...washing...cooking...dishwashing...
As the afternoon was incredibly hot...no more gardening for now, Eliza and I decided it was time for her to discover the joys of laundry day.
I had finished a summer weight shawl and matching kerchief for Eliza's cousin City Mouse...
..and as the shade is a pale pink..it required a bit of a wash....
We gathered a pretty pink lustreware teacup, a teeny tiny spoon for measuring the detergent, and a teeny tiny thimble to measure the softener.
The Lavender detergent was used....
and the shawl and kerchief were placed in the cool water and stirred gently with the spoon...a demitasse
spoon....for I use a heaping tablespoon for my load of laundry...
It is then time for the rinse cycle...a teacupful of fresh cool water...
Add a thimbleful of Lemon Verbena fabric softener...I use 3 capfuls for mine...
Eliza can't help but sniff the air...how fresh the clothes smell as they are hung on the clothes rack to dry...
Once the laundry is dry...it is time to iron the pretties...and a tiny spritz of lavender linen spray makes ironing a breeze...and an inviting task/JOY...
Eliza gathers her clothespins as I tend to some ironing of my own....
The sunroom is such a cheerful place to iron.
Scout has been happy to rest in her comfy spot, knowing all is right with the world when Grammy is twirling through the house, tending to the laundry...making the kitchen sink sparkle...folding the freshly laundered towels...and ironing the linen frocks....and husband's shirts...
There is much gratitude for this new home...filled with JOY and PEACE...and I want to share it with those who pass our way..
These are my *gratitude cookies* ...oatmeal, walnut, chocolate chunk...made in a big batch...then wrapped in waxpaper and a repurposed ribbon and handed out to the post man, who delivers mail when it is pouring rain or 103 degrees, the fed-ex man (so he won't be fed-up with so many packages to deliver at Christmastide) and any one who happens along needing a little pick me up. Suzanne at Privet and Holly had such an inspiring post on saying Thank You to those who are in her life ...doing what they do...making her life do-able...
So this is how I respond to the challenge... random acts of kindness... pass it on....
I also want to introduce you to the latest Bebe *arrival*...fresh from Brussels Jazz Festival...and giving an impromptu concert on her saxophone for Little Bunny Lulu...
Now we have found Bebe's spot atop the piano and 'neath the flute and Seth Tudor Artstand...
She is already borrowing Eliza's art stand for her poem and tag...hopeful for some sheet music just her size...Eliza is hopeful for another art stand...maybe... for autumnal receipts such as Molasses Sugar cookies and gingerbread squirrels like Dianne and Sarah make at Corgyncombe Cottage...
We'll see Eliza...we'll see....
Meanwhile, Designer Bebe is enjoying her Paris-like surroundings...especially the sparkly candles which match her lovely sparkly gown...
And my sweet Bebe girl, dressed for her Party in Paris, greets me each morning as I rise ....her spot alongside the cottage blue floral curtains is suitable and cheerful...
On this happy note...from Bebe's saxophone...sparkling candles...adorable face...
From Eliza and Grammy's delightfully scented laundry ...
And the delicious fragrance of roses and boxwood...
Make this a day of JOY.